11/22/2023 0 Comments Tag heuer monaco lsThe beating frequency increased from 2.75 Hz (19,800 vibrations per hour) to 3.0 Hz (21,600 vph). ![]() In 1971, an updated version of reference 1133 was released with a modified movement - Calibre 12 - aimed to improve the limited efficiency of the micro-rotor and increase the strength of the main spring of the Calibre 11. Just like Siffert, he had a large Heuer logo on the chest and, of course, a Heuer chronograph on the wrist. Steve McQueen took inspiration from Siffert to play the film’s main character (which was racing for the Porsche team like Siffert) and decided to wear the same jumpsuit of the Swiss champion. A friend of Jack Heuer, he was the Ambassador of the brand on the racetrack. The very first dial used for the Monaco and, on the right, the version used on most reference 1133B models with modified logos and texts positioning as well as different hours and minutes hands - The original dials used for this comparative picture are courtesy of But there are no legends without heroes and for the legendary Monaco chronograph the hero is, without doubt, Steve McQueen which gave exceptional exposure to the watch during the filming of the "Le Mans" movie, produced in 1970 and released in 1971.Īt the time, the Swiss Jo Siffert was the leading driver for the Porsche team competing in the World Sportscar Championship and was consulting on the movie. It was presented in two variations: reference 1133B and reference 1133G where the B stands for Blue and G for Grey while the first two digits refer to the mounted calibre. The first version of the Heuer Monaco was finally launched at the Basel fair as the world's first waterproof automatic chronograph with a square case. Jack Heuer was immediately attracted by the new design and negotiated with Piquerez exclusive rights over this square case which was then trademarked. This was achieved through tension created by four notches when clipping into the back of the monocoque case. To maximise returns from the introduction of the new revolutionary movement, Jack Heuer and his team decided to also use it in the Autavia, a chronograph specifically targeted to the Automotive and the Aviation markets.Īt the same time, they started considering the idea to also build a less traditional timepiece - “something out-of-the-box” and "avant-garde", to use Jack Heuer’s words - around the brand new movement.Įrwin Piquerez, the owner of a large Swiss industry making watch cases, proposed to Jack Heuer a new square case that he had just patented to guarantee waterproofness, a first for a square case. This required to modify the shape of the Carrera case because the original shape was too slim to house the pretty thick movement. Heuer originally planned to use this movement - known as Chronomatic Calibre 11 - in a Carrera model. Beating at 19,800 vibrations per hour, the movement offered a power reserve of approximately 42 hours. To achieve this milestone, Jack Heuer had promoted a partnership with Buren, Dubois Depraz and Breitling.īuren was an important manufacturer of thin automatic movements, Dubois Depraz the leading specialist in the development of chronograph modules and other complications and Breitling another famous chronograph manufacturer that could share with Heuer the funding of this expensive project - codenamed Project 99 - and the resulting output: a modular automatic chronograph built on a Buren base movement (including the self-winding and calendar mechanisms) with an independent Dubois-Depraz chronograph module attached to the watch movement by three screws. In the 1960s, Jack William Heuer, a great-grandson of the company founder, was the Managing Director of the brand and was directly involved in the development of new models like the highly successful Carrera.Īt the time, automatic watches were the call of the day and Heuer was hectically working on the creation of the world’s first automatic chronograph movement available to the public to be launched at the Basel fair in 1969. Les’s consider the background behind the development of this unusual chronograph characterised by a unique square case design. The sporty image of the brand was further consolidated, in 1969, by the creation of a watch destined to become iconic, the Monaco.
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